One Step at a Time
by ImpossibleJedi4
Summary: The USJ incident left Shouta Aizawa injured and unconscious. It also left Hizashi Yamada extremely worried and upset. Yes, everything was alright this time, but what about in the future? I guess they'll have to wait and see, but for now, things would be okay.


**AN: So I guess this is a thing now huh! I was _not _expecting to get into another fandom, and even when I did I wasn't expecting to write fic for it lol. I'm not even done the anime, I'm halfway through season 2.**

**This is written for my friend Opal as a cheer-up gift! We both love this ship haha :)**

**Anyways, I know they might be OOC a bit, as I said I'm not done the show and I haven't fully gotten a grasp of the characters yet. Feel free to comment with criticism (though please be kind! I'm very new here!). Thanks!**

It had been a while since one had felt true fear for the other. While they both risked their life on a weekly basis, the idea of dying was sort of a nebulous one, something they had obviously thought about but didn't exactly stop to really mull over. After all, spending too much time on 'what ifs' would cause them to lose their edge, and they'd been in the field for a long time. Near misses, even, had stopped scaring them so much.

Unless, of course, it was the other's near miss. While they expressed their fear in different ways, (neither outright stating it) there were small routine changes after dangerous days. Maybe they say closer during breakfast, or held hands when watching TV or reading. But it was always something small, something relatively normal.

So when Hizashi arrived at the USJ on the heels of All Might and saw the state of Shouta, forehead pressed to the cracked cement, a feeling gripped his heart that he didn't often experience. He knew that if he tried to scream, tried to use his Quirk now to save the students and his husband, all that would come out was a wheeze.

He couldn't remember the last time this had happened to him.

(Was it when they were students, as these children were? The paralyzing panic made it hard to think.)

But Hizashi was a pro. The paralysis didn't last for long, a heartbeat of real time at most, though for him it seemed like so much longer, and he joined the rest of the pro heroes in fighting off the minor villains. He had to be more careful than the rest to not knock out any allies; while his speakers helped direct the sound, he still wasn't exactly known for pinpoint accuracy. (_Do not think about how you could accidentally kill Shouta if you screw up right now. Focus on your aim. Resist the urge to look over at him because if you do, right now, he will die._)

Oh, he was absolutely ignoring the loud voice ringing in his protected ears that said Shouta was already dead.

And then All Might had instantaneously saved the students _and_ Hizashi's husband and he almost cried in relief, his knees jelly and his hands shaking. His eyes tracked the three students who were carrying away the limp form of Shouta, _his_ Shouta, who was definitely still alive. He _had_ to be.

Outwardly, to his allies flanking him, Hizashi merely trembled the faintest bit.

There was then a hand on his elbow that was not a hand but a paw, and the principal was looking up at him. The Voice Hero couldn't move save for a small tilt of his neck to meet the mouse's eyes. The principal merely nodded, a response to Hizashi's unasked question.

Hizashi bolted. He would trust the others to finish the job, dashing over to the sad little entourage making its way out of the USJ. He had to resist the urge to scream, this time not because of the dangers of his Quirk but because he didn't want to draw any more attention to them.

And… He was there. He was talking in a harsh whisper, as quiet as he ever got, and lifting his husband into a bridal carry, hurrying along the path the students had been taking away from the danger. He was barely aware that the kids were still following him. The blond hero had eyes only for the unconscious man he held in his arms.

Shouta, as he expected, looked worse up close. Angry red impressions framed his eyes from where the goggles, now laying abandoned in a pool of blood along with his capturing scarf, had bitten into his skin. His hair was still dripping red, as was his nose and his mouth and…

Hizashi was uncharacteristically silent as he bent to give Shouta a kiss on the forehead, hoping that they'd get to the hospital in time and Shouta would receive treatment and all would be well.

* * *

A week after the attack and, even though he was still in the hospital, Shouta hadn't yet woken up to anything but his husband's green eyes, Hizashi's face hovering in front of his own. Though the blonde man couldn't see due to the bandages, a small smile graced Shouta's face every single time that he met those eyes.

"Morning, darling," said Hizashi, sitting down once more in the padded chair next to the bed. "You're getting discharged today, apparently. I even brought your sleeping bag for the trip back to the apartment." He held it up enough so Shouta could see without craning his neck too much. "You'll be back to work before you know it. I'm sure those young heroes won't mind having a mummy man as their teacher."

That got a small chuckle. "I don't think they'd mind either. They'll try to joke about it when they think I can't hear them."

"Oh don't you doubt it," Hizashi crowed, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. His eyes sported bags that matched his husband's due to sleeping in a crummy hospital cot for a week, and his hair was down, brushed but not styled in any way. Hizashi always had some kind of hair tool on him, which meant that he was able to gently tease the tangles out of Shouta's unkempt hair the day after the man had first woken up. Shouta had let him, keeping his still sore eyes closed, soothed by the repetitive motion.

"Anyways, what do you want to do once we get home?" Hizashi offered. "Yeah, after all that you're getting to kick back and relax. I'll even let you pick the movie."

A chuckle that sounded more like a dry cough. "Good, because your picks are, to put it kindly, terrible."

"Hey hey hey! I can assure you my taste is just fine! I know you like some of those comedies, I can see you laughing when you think I'm not looking."

"Well, with the extensive bandaging I currently have to deal with, that won't be a problem this time."

Hizashi's heart squeezed again, not quite as badly as when he'd seen Shouta held hostage by the villains. He couldn't help but see in his mind's eye rushing in to save Shouta only to have the man die in his arms, then a funeral a week later.

He shivered.

Shouta's expert eyes caught the movement, and what was visible of his brow knitted. "… Are you okay?"

The response he received was entirely unexpected. Hizashi leaned in close, hooked one long, gentle finger onto the bandage covering Shouta's mouth, drawing it away from his lips so he could lean in and kiss him. It was all the reassurance that Hizashi needed that that future he'd seen was not reality.

"Never do that again," he murmured, refraining from resting his head against Shouta's and aggravating his head wounds.

"… I can't promise that. Neither can you." But Shouta's voice was soft, and his gaze, normally piercing to the point of pain, was even softer. Only Hizashi had ever seen him like that.

"I know." He sighed, and leaned back.

"But we will do our best," Shouta finished, "that's all we can ever do."

"Our best will be enough," Hizashi said with a Present Mic grin, standing, feeling much better despite the fact that Shouta had been unable to promise anything. He'd known the answer when he asked. He didn't mind. "Now! Let me go see what I gotta do to get you out of here."

Shouta flashed him a smile, a real smile, half visible from beneath the slightly displaced bandage. "Yes, so we can go home and watch a movie we will _both_ enjoy."

Hizashi looked at him for a moment, then rolled his eyes, still beaming. "Of course you'd say that." "Only because you will complain if I pick something too, and I say this in quotes, 'boring.'" With his arms in casts, Shouta couldn't make air quotes.

"Ey! I would not! Now I'm going to go before you take any more shots at my dignity." Hizashi marched into the hall, a mock pout on his face. After a beat he peeked his head back in, expression once again genuine. "Oh, and Shouta? I love you."

And, looking back at the dark haired man almost fully obscured by bandages, sitting weak and injured in a hospital bed with all the love in the world in his eyes, Hizashi knew that no words were needed to know that Shouta loved him too.


End file.
